Refuge Establishment

In July 1980, under ANILCA (Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act), the U.S. government set aside approximately 730,000 acres of land in eastern interior Alaska as the Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge. The purpose of the Refuge is to conserve fish and wildlife populations and habitats in their natural diversity, to provide interpretation and environmental education to the public and to provide subsistence hunting opportunities to rural inhabitants. The Tetlin Refuge is visited by thousands of migratory birds each spring and fall. Being the first refuge that travelers encounter when driving into Alaska, the Tetlin Refuge is in a strategic location to provide the initial Alaskan experience to visitors.